All is quiet on the beaches of Cohoe this July. An eerie silence has taken over what normally is tuned out by the bustling of clanking boat trailers, unmuffled beach trucks and outboards hitting the water. It is a sad and desperate time for the set netters of the Eastside. Set-net fishing has been at the core of the local culture for decades, long before other fishing types even existed. Set-net fishing has been central in the evolution of our infrastructure and is an important part of the management of Sockeye Salmon.

The so called attempt to save the Kenai River king salmon on the backs of the eastside setnetters is the biggest boondoggle I've ever witnessed in my lifetime by the so called experts employed by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. I was born here in Alaska in 1949, have spent almost all of my 63 years on the Kenai Peninsula involved in commercial fishing at some level from a very young age from drifting the Inlet with my Dad to running my own setnet site at Humpy Point, beginning in the 1950s through the present.

2012 is a sad year for the Kenai Peninsula, both for the residents and the tourists, ie, few king salmon in the streams and rumors of mushy halibut in Cook Inlet will dramatically impact its economy. And all the second guessers are having a field day -- how could this catastrophe happen? Regarding ocean trawlers, the only incentive to reduce bycatch is to make bycatch part of the catch quota, with no catch high-grading allowed. Regarding king salmon river fishing: 1) The fisheries must be bank fishing or driftboat-fishing-only, with no anchoring or anchor dragging allowed!

I have had the amazingly unique opportunity to grow up in Ninilchik and started commercial set-netting at the age of 14 on the east side of Cook Inlet. I continue to return each summer from South Carolina to work for an operation close to my home town. I also take part in the sport fishing on the Kenai river and have done so since 1989. I believe strongly in the importance of both industries.

She died after spending a week in the unchecked trap, according to Park biologist Tom Meier. Then her body was scavenged by a wolverine. The demise of the only reproducing female of the Grant Creek Pack was a horrific but fitting tribute to the Board of Game that signed her death warrant. Had the Denali Buffer Zone remained in place, this travesty would not have happened.

Nikiski Senior Citizens Inc., on behalf of the Nikiski Senior Shore Apartments (an independent living complex for seniors 55 years and up), would like to sincerely thank Greg Hyatt (an employee of ASRC), Jesse Spurgeon and Trent Burnett (Nikiski Fire Station 2) for their help in the installation of the project site sign and flag pole located on the property in Nikiski. The residents of the facility truly appreciate the beautiful sign made by Nikiski resident Ray Choat as they enter the driveway to their homes.